Awesome Movie

A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Swedish auteur Roy Andersson's feature debut at the age of 27, who has only made 5 films so far (mainly due to a 25-year hiatus from 1975-2000 of directing feature film, he has made many shorts though during the spell), his latest work A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE (2014), is a prestigious Golden Lion winner.A Swedish LOVE STORY, centres on the puppy love between two teenagers Pär (Sohlman) and Annika (Kylin), and broaches tenderly their incipient sexual awakening. Set in the sun-drenched urban and sun-dappled rural Sweden, its colour scheme and raw warmth seem to contradict the typecast impression of Scandinavian landscape, a tinge of unusualness can be sensibly discovered through the non-existent narrative and its time-capsule pop references of the time: transistor radio, leather jackets, moped, smoking cigarettes (to emulate a sophisticated mien of adults), and pop songs aplenty. The intimacy and spontaneity between the two young leads suffice to induce a pleasant if to a certain extent, lackadaisical state of awareness. Ann-Sofie Kylin imbues her naturalistic pizazz potently in her laconic register and feline appearance (her captivating blue eyes in particular), and Rolf Sohlman, not a conventionally handsome boy, but his gauche precociousness scintillates great chemistry with Kylin.However, a tongue-in-cheek savour of Andersson's shrewd perception of the contemporary society lies in the adulthood, Pär's father Lasse (Tellfelt) is a working-class garage owner whereas Annika's father John (Norström), is an ambitious refrigerator salesman, and the relationship between him and Annika's mother Elsa (Weivers) is constantly under the strain. Another prominent character is Annika's Auntie, Eva (Lindblom), a single woman, who has just been released from the convalescent hospital in the beginning and forever struck by a lugubrious melancholy since she cannot find any footing in real life.The subplots of adults resolve half-heartedly around Pär and Annika's growing affections, until the last act, the puppy love has been sidelined to a a dinner party with both families in the countryside house of Lasse, where cone-shaped paper hats and crayfish bibs are taking the centre stage, the frictions of different views of the world inconveniently emerge, between the two patriarchs. A cynical and chagrined John bursts into a hysterical but also dead serious rant in the foggy morning and an impending tragedy seems to be in the offing. After reaching the emotional peak of despair and chaos, Andersson knowingly finishes off his confident debut with apparent levity but leaves behind an acrimonious taste of social critique which elevates the film above its central teenage affair, a sturdy and unique piece of work from an up-and-coming young filmmaker.

Roy Anderson is one of the absolute best directors of Sweden along side Bergman. He proves that in this perfect movie. A Swedish Love Story is my all time favorite Swedish movie, and not just because 99 % of the Swedish movies are complete garbage.This film gives a honest view of the teenage-love compared to the adult-love. Where the youth love is almost problem free, where the teenagers have communications-issues and the adults have problems that they are some what stuck in their relationship.. Roy creates a beautiful contrast there. Another thing that is very nicely captured are the class differences between Pär and Annika's family's. The dialog in the movie is also very simple and are likely to happen in real life. And at last the music, the perfect music in this film, and for that we will have to thank Björn Isfeldt! It is a shame that this film haven't got more attention like Bergmans movies.

Beautiful film! I saw it on DVD from Lovefilm in Norway. The DVD has directors comments as well. Roy Andersson speaks about how for him the most important aspect of the film is the world of the parents, the difference in social class of both families. This is certainly valid. But what hits you in the stomach, especially if you were young in those days, is the "deja-vu" of the relation between Pär & Annika and the way that developing relation is portrayed here. I thought it was a recently made film at first (had not looked at all at what sort of film it was) and thought: "Wow, where did they get all these authentic 60's cars???" The film has a very melancholic taste to it, for me at least, born in 1954. And Ann-Sofie Kylin would have absolutely been a girl I would have totally fallen in love with. The film is funny too at times, like when Pärs' macho moped gets overtaken by a bicycle rider, eating an ice-cream. Lovely film, just lovely!

I had seen Roy Andersson's latest film "Sånger från andra våningen" (2000) before I saw this. Both were highly acclaimed in Sweden. I had expected quite a different film this time; after all, it was a love story, and since the director were younger when he made "En kärlekshistoria" I thought it would be somewhat more easygoing. That wasn't at all the case.There are several similarities between the two. There is a main plot about a 15 year old boy, working as a car mechanic assistant, who falls in love with an even younger girl. But that isn't the only thing this movie is about. Rather, it seems like Andersson shows a pessimistic view of the general problems of love in our society; lonely people, couples that quarrel, marriages that break up. Similar to his later film, it is shot slowly and very beautifully, and with a dominant depressive mood floating over it. This particularly depressive feeling which I dare to refer to as a mood characteristic of the whole Swedish society. The conversations are also very Swedish. It could be seen as criticism of the society; or just a twisted documentation of it with black humour (probably more plausible).I couldn't stand that the topic of love was described in this way. Love is the highest source of happiness. This film is completely without exaltation. Again; very Swedish.3/5.